Steve Dillinger is back as President of the Hamilton County Commissioners.  He succeeds Commissioner Mark Heirbrandt in leading as president of the board.  Christine Altman was elected vice president.  The commissioners in Hamilton County traditionally rotate in the role of president.

There are three commissioners in most Indiana counties, often referred to as the “mayors of the counties.”  Dillinger, Heirbrandt and Altman are the three Hamilton County Commissioners.

A county news release says Commissioner Dillinger has held this office since 1989, meaning he is the longest-serving county commissioner in the state.  Dillinger represents District 2, which includes the City of Fishers, City of Noblesville, and both Delaware and Noblesville Townships.

Prior to his election as a commissioner, Dillinger served on the Noblesville City Council and Hamilton County Council.

I recall the October 12th Fishers City Council session where councilors of different political stripes were debating how to make council appointments to boards and commissions, as well as how the council planned to formally establish its committee system.  The original proposal was to have the council president make decisions on appointments.

After much work, a council committee, made up of then-Council-President Selina Stoller, with other members John Weingardt, Cecilia Coble and Crystal Neumann, hammered out a final agreement allowing the council itself to have the final word on appointments after consideration from the Rules Committee.  The compromise, enacted unanimously at the January 18th council session, also provides minority representation on the three standing committees – Budget & Finance, Rules and Non-Profit.

The council consists of 7 Republicans and 2 Democrats.

Councilor Neumann, the sole Democrat on the panel proposing this system, said the final outcome came after a lot of work.  “Through collaboration, we have come to a compromise,” Neumann told her fellow Council members. “Especially in the political climate that we’re in, and the political divide amongst the nation, Fishers really leads the way in coming to a collaboration.  It just makes me really proud.”

In October, several council members objected to having the Council President make final decisions on council appointments to boards and commissions, as well as the council’s standing committees.

After witnessing that debate, and seeing the compromise reached that led to the unanimous vote on the policy in January, I find that refreshing.  Having covered Fishers government for 11 years, it is good to see local people coming together and working out their differences to come up with a policy everyone can support.

Perhaps Councilor Neumann is correct.  Maybe, just maybe, by coming together to solve this problem, could that lead to better solutions on future issues coming before the Fishers City Council?  Just maybe.

Road construction continues on State Road 37.  Also, watch lane restrictions coming up downtown along 116th Street and one lane traffic on Technology Drive in the Northeast Commerce Park area.

For details, see the weekly road construction report, as provided by the City of Fishers:

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When Hamilton County celebrates its workforce, you begin to see the length of service and meritorious recognitions and realize our local county government has a lot to celebrate.

Leading the way is Kathy Williams, receiving a certificate for 45 years of service to Hamilton County.  But she was not alone. 164 county employees were part of the celebration.

County Human Resource Director Sheena Randall provided a service pin with the number of years serving the county to each of the 164 workers.

“Hamilton County has always been a great place to work,” Williams said in a county news release. “Frankly, it is like home to me. I started working in the Clerk’s Office when I was 19 years old, so I’ve basically spent my entire life here. I love the work I do and the people I work with.”

It was first Brixx Pizza, now the Depot development space at 116th Street and Municipal Drive is occupied by the Park Place Pub.  The Fishers Board of Works and Safety approved an encroachment onto the city’s property allowing Park Place to construct an outdoor dining area (see rendering above).  The board unanimously approved the encroachment agreement.

Also, at Tuesday morning’s board meeting, the city set rental fees for the Nickel Plate Amphitheater, located north of City Hall.  The board voted for a proposal from the Parks & Recreation Department, which studied rental structures for similar facilities in the general local area.  The basic rental fee is set at $5,000.  If the group renting the facility wants other services, such as audio-visual or office space, the fee could be adjusted.  Hamilton Southeastern Schools and their affiliates are allowed complementary use of the stage
with prior approval from the city.  Parks and Recreation Director Sarah Sandquist told the board her department will work with nonprofit organizations seeking to rent the Amphitheater.  The board unanimously approved the rental fees.

The Fishers Board of Public Works & Safety considered 5G tower proposals by Verizon in four neighborhoods, denying a total of 4 5G towers and approving 6 others.

One tower proposed in the Glenn Abbey neighborhood was denied, but Mayor Scott Fadness says his reasons for voting “no” were unrelated to arguments presented by the Windermere neighborhood residents and an attorney representing the neighborhood (Glenn Abbey is part of Windermere).  The mayor says there were other locations as little as 100 feet away from the proposed tower that would be less intrusive to the residents in that area.  Neighborhood residents argued the board has the legal authority to deny this tower because it would violate city ordinances and neighborhood aesthetic standards.  The residents also pointed to a petition of residents with 238 signatures opposing the 5G tower.  All three board members voted “no” and the proposed tower was denied in the end.

The board approved two towers and denied one for the Weaver Woods neighborhood.  In Conner Knoll, 2 towers were denied and one was approved, with one of the denied towers to be moved out of the neighborhood.  A total of 3 towers were approved Cottingham Estates.  All votes were unanimous.

The Fishers Board of Works and Public Safety consists of Mayor Scott Fadness and his 2 appointees, Jeff Lantz and Jason Meyer.

Hamilton County Democrats issued a statement Tuesday saying Fishers Police and Fire Merit Commission appointments have “skirted” state law, but Mayor Scott Fadness responded that any allegation Fishers is not in compliance with state law is “false.”

State law requires 2 Democrats be appointed to each commission, according to the HAMCO Democrats.  The statute says to qualify as a Democrat, an appointee’s party affiliation is determined by their three most recent primary elections.

“The City of Fishers has skirted the mandate by including historically Republican commission members who have voted for a Democrat only once in recent history, which is not a true representation of how they will govern, and thus represents a conflict,” Dayna Colbert, Hamilton County Democratic Party Chair, said in a party news release.

In a statement issued in response, Mayor Fadness argues the city is in compliance with the law.

“This release is an annual attempt by the Hamilton County Democratic Party to play partisan politics and any statement or insinuation that these commissions are not in compliance is false,” Fadness said.

County Democrats recommended 2 women be appointed to each commission, but none of the proposed appointees were named in the party’s news release.

The Police and Fire Merit Commissions are composed of civilian members charged with administering discipline to department members, including suspension, demotion, and termination of employment.  For each commission, the mayor has two appointees, the city council one and the police or firefighters themselves vote on the remaining two members.  The mayoral and firefighter or police appointees are required to be of different political parties.

Brad DeReamer has let Fishers City Council members know about his very strong views on the influence of housing developers in Fishers for several years.  The councilman once again voiced those assertions Tuesday night on a specific rezoning issue that did pass in the end on a 6-3 vote.

It is called the Lehman development, south of 126th Street, east of Allisonville Road, adjacent to the Sunblest neighborhood.  Pulte Homes wants to construct 32 homes on 15 acres of land.

DeReamer provided examples from his own neighborhood of Britton Falls where he does not believe developers have kept specific commitments made in the past, and reiterated his argument that it appears to him that developers are “getting their way” at the expense of the city’s residents.

In the end, Pulte received the rezoning it was seeking, with DeReamer, Jocelyn Vare and Crystal Neumann voting no.

Fishers City Council Member Todd Zimmerman is serving his second stint leading the body.  At Tuesday night’s council session, Selina Stoller, the 2021 Council President, handed the gavel to Councilor Zimmerman after he was elected unanimously to lead the council in 2022.

Zimmerman served as council president in 2018 and currently leads a group helping Mayor Scott Fadness in putting together plans for a new City Hall, Arts Center and Community Center.

After much debate and discussion among members of the Fishers City Council, a new ordinance has been approved creating a committee system that establishes three standing council committees with a system for appointing members.  The Budget & Finance Committee has been existence as a standing panel for some time, but this action at Tuesday night’s council session formally creates the Rules Committee and Non-Profit Committee.

Each committee will consist of at least 3 council members, one of which will be from the minority party.  Currently, the council has 7 Republicans and 2 Democrats.

Democrat Crystal Neumann, part of the group that produced this proposal, praised the compromise that led to the measure passing unanimously.

The council also unanimously approved the council appointments for 2022.  You can find the list of appointments at this link.

Council members also unanimously approved a new Armed Services Commission.  The new panel will focus on honoring and recognizing local members of the military, as well as local veterans.